The invention is based on the object of using an existing redundant physical path structure for sending (fault) messages from a lower-level controller to a higher-level controller, without unnecessarily having to load the processing capacity of the higher-level controller by redundant fault messages in the process.
If, for example, port faults occur on the peripheral in a switching system, then these events must be reported as quickly as possible to a higher-level controller in order to allow call attempts to such defective subscriber ports to be rejected as early as possible.
For reliability reasons, in an existing redundant physical path structure, peripheral devices always transmit such fault messages in parallel, that is to say a fault message is reported to the higher-level controller simultaneously via at least two different physical paths.
Such a procedure is disclosed, for example, in the document EP-A-0 033 228.
However, as a result of said procedure, the processing capacity of the higher-level controller is used more than once for one and the same item of information, namely one fault message.
The invention is based on the object of using an existing redundant physical path structure for sending (fault) messages from a lower-level controller to a higher-level controller, without unnecessarily having to load the processing capacity of the higher-level controller by redundant fault messages in the process.
This object is achieved by the features of claim 1. An exemplary embodiment of the invention will be explained in more detail, with reference to the drawing, in the following text.